Page 98 of My Best Friend's Dad

“Alright. Together,” she agreed, but her voice still quivered anyway despite my assurance.

The sound of the front door opening made us both jump. Bella’s voice rang out from the hallway, cheerful and light and my heart dropped out from its rightful place in my chest.

“Dad! I’m home!” she called out.

Jenna’s grip tightened on my hand, and I could feel her pulse racing. I squeezed back, offering her my silent reassurance before I let go of her hand.

“Stay calm,” I whispered to her. “I’ll handle this.”

Bella walked into the living room, her face lighting up when she saw us.

“Hey there, sweetheart!” I exclaimed. She grinned and I gathered her up in his arms. When she was done, Bella stood up and gave her a hug too.

“Hey, you two! What’s going on?” Bella grinned wider, looking between the both of us.

“Hey, sweetheart,” I greeted, standing up. “We need to talk to you about something.”

Bella’s smile faltered, and she glanced between us, her eyes narrowing slightly. “What is it? You both look like you’ve seen a ghost or worse, pineapple on pizza.”

Jenna stood up, her hand still in mine. “Bella, there’s something we need to tell you. It’s… it’s important.”

Bella crossed her arms, her expression wary as she looked between the two of us.

“Okay, but I have something to tell you first and you can’t be mad…” she began, her eyes pleading, but before either of us could say anything, she took a deep breath and blurted out, “I’m dating Damon.”

I stared at her, taken aback. Damon was her bodyguard, a man I had trusted with her life for years. To say that this was unexpected was an understatement. A soft gasp escaped me, but I forced my mouth closed and swallowed hard before I dared say anything.

“You’re dating Damon?” I repeated, trying to wrap my head around the idea. “How long has this been going on?”

“A few months,” Bella admitted, looking a bit sheepish. “I know it’s a lot to take in, but… I love him, Dad. He’s good to me. He treats me well. I promise.”

I swallowed hard, trying to take in what she just told me as calmly as possible while also knowing that I had a bombshell of my own to drop too.

Keep calm. You can ream Damon a new asshole later when your daughter isn’t around.

“Sweetie, that’s… that’s exciting,” I blinked, going through a range of emotions in a fraction of a second, ultimately deciding that being calm and understanding was the best route since I still needed to tell her about me and Jenna.

Bella’s eyes widened in surprise, and she was dumbstruck for a brief moment before she spoke again, turning more suspicious by the second. “Wait. You’re not mad? You’re supposed to be mad. Who even are you? What’s the catch?”

“You’re my princess, sweetheart. As long as he treats you well and makes you happy, I’m okay with it,” I laughed, shaking my head.

I was going to kill him. I mean, not like officially, but metaphorically. That was my little girl.

“Thanks, Dad. That means a lot,” Bella said with a grin, her relief written all over her face. The suspicious glint in her eyes hadn’t completely faded away yet though as she glanced between the two of us. “So, what do you have to tell me, Dad?”

“Actually,” Jenna interjected, glancing at me nervously. “There’s somethingweneed to tell you.”

Bella looked between us, her curiosity clearly piqued. “What is it?”

I took a deep breath, deciding to just rip the Band-Aid off. The longer I waited, the madder Bella was going to get.

Here goes nothing…

“I’m dating someone too,” I began nonchalantly.

“It’s okay that you’re dating again. I’ve been expecting that for some time now,” she smiled, her eyes holding mine, soft and sweet and everything my daughter always was, big heart and all.

“It’s Jenna,” I blurted out.

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